>> to pay for it, and punishing the young and the >> poor until their demands are met. > > I'm 23, I don't feel punished, and I used the bus > every day.
While neither young nor old, rich nor poor (well, not really poor), I have no car, and as a frequent bus rider, the current situation is certainly inconvenient. There are places I used to go that I don't now. Meetings I have to miss. Time I have to give up in order to get from one place to another. Chilly weather I have to face for longer than I like. Last weekend, I spent over 4.5 hours on a bicycle in gusting winds and freezing temperatures just to get together with some old college friends for an evening - a bus would have been nice. No matter. I am supporting the bus drivers on this one. Every discomfort I feel, every inconvenience I face, I lay at the feet of the Metro Council's actions, and the Republican government supporting them. (Not that I generally expect much from the Democrats, but they're at least a bit better when it comes to public transit and benefits) Regarding the health care, it is my understanding that health care is only one of the concerns. Also included is some loss of retirement benefits. While these may be ok to renegotiate, the current offer from metro transit included basically removing benefits from people who have already earned them - not ok. There are also other things being taken away or not given. Also, don't forget, the transit union offered to meet this in binding arbitration. If a neutral arbitrator came to the table, listened to both sides, looked at the situation and then said the union had to take metro transit's offer because it was reasonable under the circumstances, they would have done it - or at least I assume so, because they offered to do it. No, from my understanding, Peter Bell refused arbitration, and for the most part, refused any degree of negotiation. A union simply can not accept that. No working human being should have to. I wouldn't. I won't. The bus driver's may have "chosen" to strike, but the degree to which they were pushed to it seems to have left them with no option other than completely rolling over. In light of that, I'll walk or bike for as long as I have to and when the bus drivers are back - having been treated with the dignity and respect any working human being deserves - I'll start riding the bus again. However, if Metro council's approach works and the union is broken - or if the buses come back with scabs driving them - I won't set a foot on them. As it is, the State of Minnesota will not see a penny of my tax dollars until this is resolved satisfactorily. If it continues for too long, we shall have to start considering what further actions we can take to support the strike and to fight those who would break both unions and public transportation with one blow. - Jason Goray Minneapolis, MN __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Finance Tax Center - File online. File on time. http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html _______________________________________________ Twin Cities Metropolitan Issues Forum http://www.e-democracy.org/tcmetro Rules: Sign posts with real name. You may not post more than twice a day.
